STORY: "Massachusetts lab tech arrested for alleged improper handling of drug tests," by reporter Elaine Quijano, published on September 30, 2012. (Thanks to the Wrongful Convictions Blog for alerting us to this important story.)
GIST: "Police in Massachusetts on Friday arrested a crime lab scientist and accused her of faking thousands of tests that may have put innocent people behind bars. Annie Dookhan was arrested at her home outside Boston. Police said the former state crime lab chemist admitted that she altered or faked test results of drug cases assigned to her. Prosecutors said she went as far as adding cocaine to samples that were negative. "There was clearly a short cutting of corners," State Attorney General Martha Coakley said. "There was just getting this done as quickly as possible and all of that we're looking at." Officials said during her nine years the lab, Dookhan tested more than 60,000 drug samples. About 11,000 people now in jail were put there in part due to her work. Already more than a dozen have been released because of questions about how she handled evidence. "Everyone who's been convicted in the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk in the last five to six years, is possibly the victim of a very substantial miscarriage of justice," defense attorney John Martin said. "On the other hand, a lot of very dangerous people might get out of jail." The entire story can be found at:
GIST: "Police in Massachusetts on Friday arrested a crime lab scientist and accused her of faking thousands of tests that may have put innocent people behind bars. Annie Dookhan was arrested at her home outside Boston. Police said the former state crime lab chemist admitted that she altered or faked test results of drug cases assigned to her. Prosecutors said she went as far as adding cocaine to samples that were negative. "There was clearly a short cutting of corners," State Attorney General Martha Coakley said. "There was just getting this done as quickly as possible and all of that we're looking at." Officials said during her nine years the lab, Dookhan tested more than 60,000 drug samples. About 11,000 people now in jail were put there in part due to her work. Already more than a dozen have been released because of questions about how she handled evidence. "Everyone who's been convicted in the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk in the last five to six years, is possibly the victim of a very substantial miscarriage of justice," defense attorney John Martin said. "On the other hand, a lot of very dangerous people might get out of jail." The entire story can be found at:
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57522834/massachusetts-lab-tech-arrested-for-alleged-improper-handling-of-drug-tests/
See this link for story on special court sessions set up to deal with the influx of Annie Dookhan cases:
http://www.boston.com/metrodesk/2012/10/01/special-court-session-deal-with-influx-annie-dookhan-cases-suffolk-county/mPaNAuLDhT7xkkqVXTirUM/story.html
PUBLISHER'S NOTE:
I am monitoring these cases. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments.
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site. One word of caution: It may take several weeks for content from current posts to respond to the search. Search away!
The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html
Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog.
